Alfa Romeo Giulia (2015) first of nine new Alfas

Luxury Car Brands - PORTALAlfa Romeo is about to kickstart a product renewal programme which could launch nine new cars by the end of the decade.

The revelation is published in the new January 2015 issue of CAR magazine, on sale on 17 December. In it, our European editor Georg Kacher interviews Alfa Romeo CEO Harald Wester, who spells out his vision for the rejuvenated Italian car maker.

It marks the end of a painfully long wait for new products; most Alfas have withered on the vine, leaving just two core model lines on sale in the UK today, or three if you include the 4C sports car.

Alfa Romeo Giulia: launching in June 2015

The first new Alfa Romeo to kickstart the product renewal is the Giulia. CAR understands the new 3-series rival will be shown on 24 June 2015, when the company is due to mark its 105th anniversary.

Incredibly, the 159 has been absent from Alfa’s range for several years now and the Giulia will thrust the company back to the heart of Europe’s premium car heartland.

Why the big delay? Because Fiat Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne sent the project back to square one - and now we know why. It wasn’t just a stylistic U-turn; Alfa Romeo is developing a new rear-wheel drive architecture, codeveloped with Maserati - and it’ll underpin all the new models in the pipeline.

Alfa Romeo goes RWD again

The news will come as a godsend to Alfisti, a generation brought up on rear-wheel drive Alfas. The platform is based on the RWD matrix of the Ghibli, but mated to smaller-capacity engines.

The four-cylinder motors are understood to be a 1.4 turbo (110 or 180bhp) and a 1.8 available with 200 or 330bhp.

But to compete in the executive heartland, Alfa must offer multi-cylinder engines too. CAR understands a Maser-twinned petrol V6 will be offered in 2.5 and 3.0 capacities, developing up to 510bhp.

A suite of diesel engines will also be available, from a 1.6 four-cylinder to a 3.0 V6 common-rail TD.

And Alfa crossovers, sports cars and execs are coming too

Following the new 2015 Giulia comes the next Giulietta in 2016. It too switches to the rear-wheel drive format, making it more of a BMW 1-series hatchback rival. Four-wheel drive will be optional on more powerful models, as with most Alfas.

The Mito supermini bites the bullet; instead, Alfa Romeo plans to stretch upwards into BMW 5-series territory, with a model twinned with the Ghibli and stretching to 4.9m long. The Ammiraglia ‘flagship model will be a sporty and prestigious four-door saloon, period,’ vows Wester.

To read more about the new Alfa Romeo range, don’t miss the full interview with the Alfa Romeo boss in the new January 2015 issue of CAR magazine, on sale now.